The number of U.S. households that include an animal continues to rise. These households typically include at least one companion animal such as a dog or cat. In many instances companion animals are viewed as part of the family and spend more time in the home than outside. This desire by pet owners to have their animals close presents one major problem, especially with dogs, pets tend to track dirt and mud into an owner's home. In addition to dirt a pet could also track in chemicals or other harmful substances. The soiling of a pet's paws is a necessary evil since it is almost always unavoidable that a pet, especially a dog, must be let outside for excrement of bodily waste and exercise. Because a pet typically goes outside a few times a day it is unavoidable that the pet's paws will become soiled from time to time which then leads to dirt and debris tracked into the home.
Traditionally and still currently used by many pet owners, the pet owners are required to bath the entire animal or manually wash each paw by hand with water and a towel. This scenario is neither easy nor efficient. Both require an investment of time and typically results in the failed attempt at limiting the pet's movement only to end up with a partially clean pet and either water all over the floor of the home or soiled and dirty dripping towels. Therefore a need exists for a convenient device that allows a pet owner to easily and efficiently wash the paws of a pet.
Additionally, various devices have been proposed that are designed to wash the paws of an animal. These devices in certain instances are passive cleaning devices that require the animal to walk into or place the animal's paws in a basin and then utilizes reciprocating brushes or other cleaning elements such as foam and sponge like materials to clean the paws. These devices may clean the pads of the paw, but any dirt or mud that is on the upper surface of the paw or slightly up the lower leg of the pet will not make contact with the cleaning elements and therefore remain. Additionally, these devices do not always work well at keeping the water and cleaning material in a basin when cleaning an excited pet, nor are they easily transportable or easy to store. Further, some past devices have been designed to fit over the paw, but each of these are cumbersome and difficult to use. These devises also have numerous parts and pieces that require constant cleaning and maintenance. These devices are not designed to prevent the water or cleaning agents from splashing out of the devices, which is of particular concern when dealing with an animal with unpredictable behavior.
Therefore a need exists for a handheld cleaning device that easily and efficiently cleans an animal's paw. The handheld device allows a pet owner to hold a single product and easily clean the animal's paw without spilling or splashing water or cleaning elements during the cleaning process. Further, the need exists for a device that can easily be cleaned and stored for later use and designed to handle rough use that is typically present when the cleaning of an animal is desired.